03333 447700The rapid rise of the
'Zoom Commuter'
People across the UK have become increasingly used to new ways of working over the past couple of years.
Now that lockdowns have ended and a sense of normality has returned, hybrid working is now the norm for millions.
But with poor broadband, working from home simply isn't an option and you too may have to become a 'Zoom Commuter'.
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What is a 'Zoom Commuter'?
Our recent consumer research reveals that slow broadband is forcing 1 in 3 of those that could otherwise happily work from home to travel into the office for important Zoom meetings and other online work activities. Simply put, their internet connection just isn't good enough.
This worrying rise of the 'Zoom Commuter' highlights not only the changing nature of work but also how digital connectivity is failing to meet both professional and personal needs for so many of us.
Why does this matter?
Prior to the pandemic, not being able to efficiently work from home was seen as far less of an issue. But now our expectations of where we can and should be able to work from have changed drastically.
Over the last couple of years, many have experienced the benefits of greater flexibility, feeling a general increase in wellbeing when working from home. So being unable to take advantage of the improved work/life balance offered by working from home due to a lack of digital connectivity further exacerbates and entrenches the current 'Digital Divide'.
This disparity has significant consequences when it comes to the economic prosperity of households and is felt most harshly by rural homes and communities that are more likely to suffer from poor broadband speeds.
The cost of living crisis
And it's not just about missing out on a better work/life balance either.
Given the current cost of living crisis, the 'Zoom Commuter' issue becomes of even greater concern. Data from the ONS showed that 50% of people spent less on fuel whilst working from home during the pandemic. So a lack of decent broadband, which forces people to travel into the office rather than work from home, imposes yet more strain on already tightened UK household budgets.
Our research also revealed that the greatest impact is on the younger generation's ability to work from home. 39% of 16-29 year olds, and 33% of 30-44 year olds who could work from home say that poor broadband makes this difficult. Those within such demographics are often raising young families and therefore feeling the impacts of the cost of living crisis most acutely.
And of course not having to go into the office every day also has environmental advantages, since commuter journeys are not an insignificant contributor to an increased carbon footprint.
Can the Government do more?
The Government certainly talks a good game but is all too often failing to deliver on its promises. Despite the fact that addressing digital ineqality forms a key part of its 'Levelling Up' Agenda, when it comes to taking real-world action to close the 'Digital Divide', the Government just isn't doing enough.
Similarly, the Government has also backtracked on an initial promise to make flexible working the default wherever possible.
So it's vital that the Government not only makes much more rapid progress in closing the 'Digital Divide' but also provides many more Brits with the ability to work flexibly and to experience the many benefits that go hand in hand with hybrid working.
Do you think that the Government should be doing more? You're not alone - so does over half of the UK. Find out more about how we're pressuring the Government to improve access to decent and reliable broadband for all with our Entitledto10 campaign.
Is poor broadband making it a struggle
for you to work from home?
If slow broadband is making your working day a real chore or even forcing you to travel into the office, our easy to use broadband speed test lets you check your current connection's performance.
Then if you'd like to find out if our 4G and 5G broadband services could give you the broadband speeds you've been longing for, enter your results below and we'll let you know.
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Great news - we've got the solution for you
You should definitely get in touch. Our Fast 4G broadband offers average speeds of 25 Mbps and covers almost every UK property. What's more, it'd only take us a week or two to get you up and running with a genuinely life-changing much faster connection.
We may not have a solution for you today… but we will soon
We can't help you quite yet. But the networks are also starting to roll out low-band 5G coverage as of October 2021 – and once that reaches your area, our SuperFast Plus 5G broadband will provide speeds in the region of 50 to 60 Mbps, compared to our 4G’s average of 25 Mbps.
We may be able to improve your broadband soon
You’ll probably need to wait for full fibre broadband to become available where you are to be able to get a faster connection. Or depending on your current speeds, you might be interested in our SuperFast Plus 5G broadband. Available soon, this will offer an average performance of around 50 to 60 Mbps.
Congratulations! You have excellent broadband
You've already got a broadband connection that's providing you with ultrafast speeds, meaning faster than 100 Mbps. You must have a full fibre broadband service and that’s the fastest broadband delivery technology currently available. You can't do better than that!
Great news - we've got at least one solution for you
You should definitely get in touch. Our Fast 4G broadband offers average speeds of 25 Mbps and covers almost every UK property. What's more, you may well also be covered by our UltraFast 5G broadband with speeds in excess of 100 Mbps.
Find out how to fix your slow broadband today
Great news – we can provide you with 5G broadband
You're almost certainly covered by our UltraFast 5G broadband services. With average speeds in excess of 100 Mbps, UltraFast 5G broadband can be deployed within just a few days, giving you the lightning-quick connection speed you've been waiting for.
We may well be able to improve your broadband performance
You are almost certainly covered by our UltraFast 5G broadband services and depending on the strength of the 5G signal where you are, you could get speeds approaching 300 Mbps. However, because it’s impossible for us to guarantee that level of performance, we much prefer to quote average 5G broadband speeds, which are around 120 Mbps.
Congratulations! You have excellent broadband
You've already got a broadband connection that's providing you with ultrafast speeds, meaning faster than 100 Mbps. You must have a full fibre broadband service and that’s the fastest broadband delivery technology currently available. You can't do better than that!
We all deserve decent broadband
According to Ofcom, there are around 600,000 properties in the UK that still can't get access to decent broadband speeds of 10Mbps. Such slow connection speeds make it near impossible to complete the most basic of online activities, let along being able to work effectively from home.
The impact this has on people's daily lives is profound and improvement to broadband provision across the country is just not moving fast enough. Too many people in the UK are endlessly waiting on the promise of fibre, thinking they have no other choice as they're unaware of the alternative broadband solutions that are already available to them, both immediately and cost-effectively.
At National Broadband, every day we get to see the hugely positive impact our 4G and 5G broadband services have on our customers' day to day lives. And that's what makes us passionate about ensuring that every UK home and business has the best broadband possible.
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Would you like to know more? Give us a call on 03333 447700 or email us
at enquiries@national-broadband.co.uk – or just fill in the enquiry form at the top of this page